[:it]Equality and Marriage[:]

[:it]It is estimated that homosexuality and bisexuality affect millions of people in Italy. Italy has always denied these citizens, who live in romantic relationships with members of their own sex, the right to a recognized and protected family life, thus discriminating against these relationships and placing them at a lower social and legal level than those between members of the opposite sex.

The fight for full equality

Yet it has been demonstrated that the recognition of full equality has positive effects not only for gay, lesbian and bisexual people, but also for the entire community.. First of all, it sends a positive message of recognition and cultural acceptance of same-sex relationships, allowing younger generations of gay, lesbian, and bisexual people (as well as transgender and intersex people) to grow up more peacefully and finally be able to imagine a future of equality, at least on a legal level. But there is more: a study conducted in the United States after the introduction of equal marriage in Massachusetts, published by the’American Journal of Public Health, [Hatzenbuehler et al., 2012] has demonstrated how the introduction of this institution has favoured the improvement of the well-being of homosexual people, with a reduction in minority stress in terms of depression and similar problems and a consequent reduction in health care spending.

Gay and lesbian parenting

Even the opposition to the possibility of LGBTI people being parents or adopting children, just like heterosexual people, has no scientific basis: There are over 70 studies that demonstrate that there is no difference in the development of children of same-sex couples compared to children of heterosexual couples. [Manning et al., 2014; see also the Columbia Law School link] and a study published in 2015 by the scientific journal Social Science Research demonstrates how the scholarly consensus on this issue is now overwhelming [Adams and Light, 2015]. The few studies that go against the trend can be counted on the fingers of one hand and have been heavily criticized for their methodology, so much so that they are considered fundamentally flawed [Cheng and Powell, 2015].

For these reasons, the extension of civil marriage to people of the same sex, the full recognition of gay and lesbian parenthood, and the possibility of accessing a plurality of forms of family regulation, are long-term objectives for Arcigay.

From civil unions to equal marriage

Same-sex marriage, in particular, is among the priority objectives in the Association's battle for full citizenship and equality for LGBTI people, since the Association's Congress in February 2010, as well as one of the strategic objectives for the future of the Association, being also foreseen in many countries around the world. [download the map here].

Until the 2016 Cirinnà law, recently introduced thanks in part to the advocacy work of Arcigay, hundreds of thousands of Italian LGBTI people who form families (even with children) had no recognition of their relationships and faced daily exclusion and difficulties.

To date, civil unions recognized by law guarantee certain fundamental rights to same-sex couples, such as the right to treatment and healthcare decisions in the event of incapacity, joint or separate ownership of property, pension reversion, inheritance and the right to take over contracts, marital leave and family allowances, the right to take the partner's surname, and several others. Unfortunately, however, no rights are provided for the couple's children because the legislature has failed to recognize the existence and full legitimacy of same-sex families with children. [ Download the law text here ] For this reason, and To affirm the equality of all couples formed by an emotional bond, whether they are made up of people of the same or different sex, and of the children born within these couples, access to equal marriage is an essential objective for the full civil and social recognition of Italian LGBTI people..

Our long journey of battles towards equal marriage

After having energetically supported and organised well-attended demonstrations in support of the 2007 legislative proposals on PACS (later defined as DICO), the’The association then began a long journey towards equal marriage in 2010., also by wholeheartedly supporting the legal battle of the "Sì lo voglio" Committee, which led the Constitutional Court to rule favorably on gay marriage and to call on Parliament to legislate on the issue. During the 2013 general election, Arcigay launched the #temposcaduto campaign for the first time, monitoring and lobbying candidates from all parties during the campaign. It asked for specific commitments on four points, assigning a score to each. These commitments included a positive stance on same-sex marriage and gay and lesbian parenthood. A similar and even more detailed campaign was conducted in 2014 for the European elections, with #cominciatu, which again asked all candidates to support the fight for same-sex marriage and to join the platform of ILGA Europe, the European LGBTI association, which in turn asked for specific commitments. At the beginning of 2015 the association began, also thanks to the collaboration with Condividilove, to set up the campaign for equal marriage, which would later become The #lostessosì campaign – the same love, the same rights, called upon several LGBTI and non-LGBT organizations: this is where the red heart with the equal sign symbol was born, which has characterized all the months of struggle during the debate on civil unions and which will also characterize the continuation of the battle for equal marriage.: in this light several actions have been carried out, such as the flashmob in the days of Saint Valentine and of the World Day Against Homophobia in 2015 and 2016, or during the 2015 Pride, or within the mobilization #wakeupitalia which brought 1 million citizens to the streets in dozens of Italian cities on January 23, 2016, or again the action at the International Collision Festival in July 2016.

References:

ISTAT, The homosexual population in Italian society, May 2012. (http://www.istat.it/it/archivio/62168)

Mark L. Hatzenbuehler, Conall O'Cleirigh, Chris Grasso, Kenneth Mayer, Steven Safren, and Judith Bradford, Effect of Same-Sex Marriage Laws on Health Care Use and Expenditures in Sexual Minority Men: A Quasi-Natural Experiment, American Journal of Public Health, February 2012, Vol. 102, No. 2, pp. 285-291. (http://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2105/AJPH.2011.300382)

Wendy D. Manning, Marshal N. Fettro, Esther Lamidi, Child Well-Being in Same-Sex Parent Families: Review of Research Prepared for American Sociological Association Amicus Brief, Population Research and Policy Review, 2014, Vol. 33, No. 4, pp. 485-502.

Jimi Adams, Ryan Light, Scientific consensus, the law, and same sex parenting outcomes, Social Science Research, Vol. 53, September 2015, pp. 300-310.

Simon Cheng, Brian Powell, Measurement, methods, and divergent patterns: Reassessing the effects of same-sex parents, Social Science Research, Vol. 52, July 2015, pp. 615-626[:en]Equal Rights and Equal Marriage

According to estimates, homosexuality and bisexuality concern millions of people in Italy. Citizens who live in love relationships with people of their same sex have always been denied the right to a recognized and protected family life. Italy thus discriminates these relationships and places them into a lower level of social and legal protection, compared to straight couples.

The Fight for Full Equality

Yet studies show that by recognizing full equality, there are positive effects not only for gay, lesbian and bisexual people, but for the entire community. First of all, this would launch a positive message of cultural recognition and acceptance, while also allowing a younger generation of gay, lesbian and bisexual (but also transgender and intersex) people to grow up in a more peaceful environment, allowing them to imagine a future of equality, at least on the legal level. But there's more: a study conducted in the United States after the introduction of equal marriage in Massachusetts, published in the American Journal of Public Health, [Hatzenbuehler et al., 2012] shows that the introduction of same-sex marriage has favored an increase in the well-being of homosexual people, with reduced minority stress, measured in terms of depression and similar problems, and a subsequent decrease in healthcare spending.

Gay and Lesbian Parenting

Also the opposition to LGBTI people being parents or adopting children has no scientific basis: there are over 70 studies showing that there is no difference in the development of children of same-sex couples and of children of heterosexual couples [Manning et al., 2014; see also Columbia Law School]. A study published in 2015 in the Social Science Research journal shows how the general consensus of scholars is overwhelming positive [Adams and Light, 2015]. Opposition studies can be counted on the fingers of one hand and have been strongly criticized for their methodology: they are in fact considered fundamentally flawed [Cheng and Powell, 2015].

For these reasons, the extension of civil marriage to same-sex couples, the full recognition of gay and lesbian parenting rights, and the possibility to access a plurality of family regulatory forms, are longtime objectives for us at Arcigay.

From Civil Unions To Equal Marriage

Equal marriage is among our priorities as we fight for full citizenship and equality for LGBTI people. This goal was set in February 2010 at the Association's Congress. Equal marriage obviously represents one of the strategic objectives for the association: Italy should become one of the many countries worldwide to have it [click here to download the map].

Until the Civil Union Law was passed in 2016, also thanks to the role played by Arcigay, hundreds of thousands of Italian LGBTI families were not recognized in any way, as they incurred daily in discrimination and difficulties, even when there were children involved.

The Italian Civil Unions guarantee basic rights to same-sex couples, like the right to take healthcare decisions on behalf of the spouse in case of incapacity, fiscal property determination, survivor beneficiary pension, inheritance, taking over of contracts, marriage leave, child support, the right to acquire the surname of the partners, and more. Despicably as it may seem, no parenting rights are recognized: the Italian lawmakers decided to avoid full recognition of same-sex parents with children. [Click here to download the law] This is one of the main reasons why we consider equal marriage as a fundamental goal, for the affirmation of equality of all couples, no matter their sexual orientation, for the sake of their children. This is an essential objective for full civil and social recognition of Italian LGBTI people.

Our long-standing battle for equal marriage

Arcigay was already on the battlefield organizing mass-gatherings as a first proposal for a civil-union law (the then called “DICO”, inspired by the French PACS law) reached the Parliament in 2007. That was the first step in a long-time battle for equal marriage. Arcigay took part to the legal battle that started in 2010 by joining the “Sì lo volo” (lit. “Yes I do”) Committee, that successfully led the Italian Constitutional Court to express itself in favor of gay marriages and to invite the Parliament to pass a law. During the 2013 general election, Arcigay started the first #temposcaduto campaign (lit. “time is over”), monitoring and pressuring candidates of all political parties to firmly commit on 4 points, and assigning a score to each one of them: one of these points was about supporting equal marriage and parenting rights. A similar campaign, but more sophisticated, was launched for the 2014 European elections: #cominciatu (lit. “you start”, from a famous hit from the 70s), which still asked all candidates to support the battle for equal marriage and to sign the platform put together by ILGA-Europe, the European LGBTI association which in turn called for firm commitments.

At the beginning of 2015, Arcigay began working on a campaign strategy for reaching equal marriage, also thanks to the collaboration with Sharelove. The result was #losessosì – the same love the same rights (“The same 'I do' – same love, same rights‘) a nation-wide campaign involving several LGBTI and non-LGBTI organizations. The campaign symbol (a red heart with a “ = ” sign in the middle) was featured during the long public debate on civil unions and will characterize the continuation of the battle for egalitarian marriage. Several actions were carried during that period, like flash mobs on Valentine's Day and on the International Day Against Homophobia in 2015 and 2016, during the Pride Parades of 2015, as well as during the mass-gatherings of #svegliatitalia (lit. “Italy, wake up!”) when 1 million citizens took over dozens of squares all over Italy on January 23rd, 2016, or during the Collisioni International Festival in July 2016.

References:

ISTAT, The homosexual population in Italian society, May 2012. (http://www.istat.it/it/archivio/62168)

Mark L. Hatzenbuehler, Conall O'Cleirigh, Chris Grasso, Kenneth Mayer, Steven Safren, and Judith Bradford, Effect of Same-Sex Marriage Laws on Health Care Use and Expenditures in Sexual Minority Men: A Quasi-Natural Experiment, American Journal of Public Health, February 2012, Vol. 102, No. 2, pp. 285-291. (http://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2105/AJPH.2011.300382)

Wendy D. Manning, Marshal N. Fettro, Esther Lamidi, Child Well-Being in Same-Sex Parent Families: Review of Research Prepared for American Sociological Association Amicus Brief, Population Research and Policy Review, 2014, Vol. 33, No. 4, pp. 485-502.

Jimi Adams, Ryan Light, Scientific consensus, the law, and same sex parenting outcomes, Social Science Research, Vol. 53, September 2015, pp. 300-310.

Simon Cheng, Brian Powell, Measurement, methods, and divergent patterns: Reassessing the effects of same-sex parents, Social Science Research, Vol. 52, July 2015, pp. 615-626[:]